PAIRED TEXT FICTION AND NONFICTION Mary Wheatley CLIP February 11, 2010

The Facts about Reading Aloud  … The single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success is reading aloud to children. - Anderson, R.C., Hiebert, E.H., Scott, J.A., & Wilkinson, I.A.G. (1985). Becoming a nation of readers: The report of the Commission on Reading. Washington, DC: National Academy of Education, Commission on Education and Public Policy.

Choosing What to Read Aloud  Most choose fiction books  Favorite classic fiction picture books are plentiful in classroom libraries and school library

Nonfiction Overlooked  Studies have revealed the scarcity of nonfiction reading and writing in primary schools  Children engaged in informational text on average of 3.6 minutes per day  -Reading Research Quarterly  Nell Duke, Michigan State

It Takes Two  Connects the curriculum to books by pairing fiction and nonfiction books  Provides an authentic way of introducing content material  Boosts students’ understanding and enjoyment of reading

Why use paired texts: 1. To meet state standards and school curricular goals. 2. Students become excited about what they are learning and retention is increased. 3. Develop students' background knowledge and create more meaningful connections while reading 4. Improve student reading comprehension 5. Increase student vocabulary 6. Improve critical thinking / higher order thinking skills 7. Enhance student writing 8. Meet two goals at once: expose students to high quality literature and present students content area information List adapted from: Camp, D. (2006). Pairing fiction & nonfiction: Strategies to build comprehension in the content areas. New York City, NY: Scholastic.

Build Background  It Takes Two: Teaching with Twin Texts of Fact and Fiction  Break into 5 Strategy Groups (groups of 4)  Venn Diagram  K-W-L  DR-TA/DL-TA  Webbing  Activating Prior Knowledge

Read and Respond  All: Read pages 400 through 402, through and including subheading Classroom Applications of Twin Texts  All: Read page 407 subheading Helping Students and Teachers Meet Challenges  Strategy group: Find your section within article and read

Strategy Group Response: Strategy Chart  In your strategy group summarize the following:  Definition of strategy  General Procedures for Implementation  Additional Comments

Applying the Strategies Reading aloud Fiction and Nonfiction: Little Penguin Watch Me Grow

Strategy Group But will it work?  How could you apply your strategy for Little Penguin Watch Me Grow

Wiki of Ideas  Read aloud tips and resources  Pairs of titles (grouped by subject)  Nonfiction text instructional resources  Teaching strategies for paired text  Paired Fiction and Nonfiction Texts Wiki Paired Fiction and Nonfiction Texts Wiki

It Takes Two Classroom Teacher & Librarian  Read twin texts in the classroom  Read twin texts in the library  Read twin texts in the classroom & library

Together we can make it happen!